Moonspell
by Shadoobie
Summary: (Supernatural AU) Cut from a similar vein as "Lunacy" but in this universe, Jaune is a werewolf who wants nothing more than to please his Shaman Handler, Pyrrha. (Explicit. Possible TW for bondage, sub/dom-ish relationship, discipline.)
1. Chapter 1

**Moonspell**

Pyrrha Nikos sits alone in her garage which also seconds as her workshop, all of her shamanic tools and paraphernalia out in the open since she almost never has visitors. One wall is covered from top to bottom in various articles of weaponry and armor from all over the world. The table she sits at is orderly, well organized, but loaded down with a perfectly arranged assortment of tool boxes, along with anything else one would need to maintain and craft leather and steel. The other wall is hidden behind a host of planter boxes and hydroponic equipment set up on a trio of long benches. Various herbs and flowers spring up out of the rich soil, any and all of them meant to be put in tinctures and potions. Beside the door leading into her modest home is an automatic coffee maker, the machine growling and sputtering as it heats the water in the reservoir and pushes it into the pile of herbal tea waiting in the filter. It drips into the glass pot a bright, ruby red color.

The stereo on the table beside her hums with traditional Mistrali music, soothing and easy for her to get lost in as she works the edge of blade against a whetstone. She had been meaning to do this alongside a host of other things in preparation for a line of tough jobs coming up next week, but it just hasn't been easy to focus on anything but the usually delightful man she shares her home with. That's just how it gets when the full moon comes around.

He wasn't her first charge as a Handler, likely not the last either -although he may have to be if this gets any more serious. Something about him had been different than the few others she had fostered and helped integrate safely into the area, and not just because he had been with her for so long. It's rare that a Shaman is pestered about timetables, as it's common knowledge that you don't rush their work unless someone was dead, dying, on fire, or a simultaneous combination of the three coupled with unnatural resurrection.

Jaune Arc is the only son of an exceptionally powerful Witch -the seventh child, no less- and with bloodlines and birth order and his being male conjoined in such a way, even having a human father leaves the odds heavily in favor of a supernatural birth. Werewolves are the most typical, but Pyrrha knew of others; elementals, Gatekeepers, and various types of Fey. The sheer amount of raw magic in Alpha males born under these circumstances is without measure and only adds to their already fierce temperament when they turn, as if they aren't bad enough as they are.

But Jaune isn't so bad, she thinks to herself with a relaxed sign. He isn't like the others, be it in his human skin or his tawny fur. The Alphas Pyrrha had handled before him had been obstinate, surly, often times rude and seemingly uncivilized in spite of having been raised by their own kind or at least their mothers. In a way she understood; being with a Handler is hard, getting kicked out of your own home and expected to heed a stranger when you're convinced you don't need them. But they do. They needed her to show them how to hide, how to hunt for houses that would suit their peculiar needs, how to get in touch with other supernaturals that would help them find jobs and schools and hospitals that are safe for them.

Jaune had been timid and resigned when he showed up at her door four years ago. He didn't grunt and snort like most males did when she told him the rules of the house, and showing him the shelter were he would be for the duration of the full moon didn't make him bristle defensively. He would just nod his head and say "sure, okay", which didn't come off so much as shy as submissive. He already knew his place and knew trying to muscle his way out of it -which is instinctive for Alpha males- wouldn't make the situation any more pleasant. He explained it as "that's what happens when you have a mom like mine and six older sisters". Which actually made more sense than most explanations would have. His mother -gods bless her, Pyrrha adored the woman- had the foresight to see to it her son learned how to respect the women in his life in spite of his primal compulsions, a trait that is of notoriously short supply in others of his kind.

He always said please and thank you, apologized even at times where it wasn't necessary, and he helped her around the house. The last of which she made sure to have all her charges do seeing as they lived here too, but with him she didn't have to ask. Once, when she came home from two weeks away on a job, she found the house spotless and her bed linens freshly laundered. When she asked about it he just said "I wanted to." Pyrrha wonders if that was what made their relationship start to change. Or maybe it had been his insistence that he cook almost every night or that she join him for evening movies on the couch after dinner. Or was it when he started bringing her tea in the morning so they could sit on the back porch and talk about nothing and everything? Maybe it was...who knows?

Pyrrha laughs to herself, a warm smile pulling her lips. In any case, it changed all the same. At first, when it was just a kiss, she was scared. Well, maybe not scared as she was hesitant. Shamans and supernaturals becoming lovers wasn't sneered at, not even really discouraged -if werewolves were to take lovers outside of their kind, a Shaman is the best case scenario- it's more so that she was convinced it wouldn't last. He would find his way in the world like all the others and move on, or he was like the other Alpha males and would find that he simply didn't trust her enough to love her. How could anyone feel safe enough to sleep next to someone who could kill you in a second?

Somehow Jaune did. Then again, in her mind, it all boiled down to that even though it might not last, she is already thirty and never kissed a man. A few girls when she was an apprentice, but no boys. Besides she actually liked Jaune a lot, and _like_ eventually turned into _love_ as it is often prone to do. Their first time being intimate only made her fall that much harder; he had been so gentle and caring, nothing at all like she ever imagined an Alpha male to be. Of course he was human -he refused to let their first time happen under any other circumstances- but in the throws of hormones and animal instinct, who knew?

Pyrrha checks the old, grease smudged digital clock on the wall above her, only then realizing that the little coffee maker is done brewing. She quickly finishes her work on the knife and then goes to fix herself a drink. Taking a small paper cup from the stack beside the machine she takes a moment to blow on it, making it cool enough to shoot down in one go. She'll do this twice more, swearing she can feel her pupils dilating when she swallows. Pyrrha will go back to her workbench, pulling out another knife to sharpen until she feels restless, the tea working like it should.

She'll find other work to do, time consuming tasks that busy her mind so she won't keep watching the clock. Pyrrha cleans every gun she owns, not just because she needs to but because she wants to see just how fast she can do it. She doesn't need a stopwatch. From there she catalogs her current supply of ammunition, marking down whatever she needed to get more of, making a list and checking it twice. Thrice. After that she goes through her plants and checks them for bugs and dying leaves, partly disappointed when there are none. She eventually resigns herself to a light workout, feeling better and pleased that she threw away over an hour to the activity. Now it's off to the shower for a quick rinse and then the kitchen.

As with all of her other charges, Pyrrha had to prepare for Jaune's impending, post-change appetite, which was always ravenous but thankfully predictable. Alphas always needed the same things: starch, salt, and protein-protein-protein. Back in the old days, when werewolves lived in the wild with large packs, stores of food were collected before the full moon so they wouldn't have to hunt in an already depleted state. Now they have Shaman's to care for them, and Pyrrha found a quiet happiness in taking care of Jaune. Once he came back to his senses he was always grateful for her work, and always apologized when he ate too fast to leave her any. And that's why she's making a double batch of stew tonight, that and she meant to have a little before she joined Jaune in the shelter.

The last hour before sunrise is spent moving about the house, doing little things to keep her occupied all the while marking the time in passing. She jumps a little when her watch finally chimes the hour and then hurries back to the kitchen. Pyrrha slips an insulator sleeve around the stock pot, not just to keep the contents warm until the two of them actually got around to eating, but also so she could actually carry it without using the handles. In her other hand is a canvas bag weighed down with whatever is inside. She locks the house behind her as she exits through the back door.

If ever any of her distant neighbors were nosy enough to come by and ask about the big concrete door in the hillside behind her house, she would just laugh and explain it away as a fallout shelter. Pyrrha doesn't care that everyone within ten miles of here thinks she's a doomsday prepper, and it isn't entirely untrue -if her acquaintances knew even half of the armageddon scenarios she did, they'd likely join in and build one of their own. In any case the shelter most certainly could stand up to most supernatural attacks and anything humans could come up with, but for the most part she uses it to keep her charges safe and contained when the full moon rolls around.

On the door are painted various seals and symbols from just as many religions of just as many countries, resembling the clusters of tattoos that cover her body beneath her clothes. But unlike her tattoos, these wards can only be seen by the right people. So not only does she need keys to undo the trio of steel locks on the door, she needed the proper hand gestures to disarm the seals so she isn't immolated on the spot.

Behind the concrete is solid iron, making the door an absolute bitch to pull open sometimes. Once inside with everything she brought she reaches in the darkness for the light switch, finding it effortlessly from memory. More concrete is there to greet her, now tinted yellow with the trio of bar lights that flickered to life on the ceiling. Then the rattle of chains grabs her attention, pulling her eyes to the large iron cage in one corner of the room and the tawny mass of fur inside of it. It will be a few more minutes before Jaune changes, but Pyrrha can already feel the crackling of wild energy shifting in the air around them. Her pulse picks up, heat flushing her from head to toe.

Pyrrha didn't always think he was that attractive, in his human form or out of it. Sure, he had a certain boyish charm about him and was a bit of a dork, but she never really put much thought into it. Now it's too long ago for her to care, because he's beautiful in every way as far as she's concerned, even if he's _still_ a dork.

With practiced efficiency she moves about the room, setting things up as she usually does. There's a bed across from the cage, the blankets folded into a neat stack at the foot for later when they would actually need them. All the while she listens to the growling and snarling and the rattle of steel behind her as the werewolf in the cage resists his confines. Surely he can smell her by now, smell her low key arousal, and his most primitive senses and desires are starting to stir like the makings of a wildfire -quiet and warm, a breath away from roaring into a reckless blaze. She can just imagine those solid, midnight blue eyes tracking her every move between the bars, likely centered on her taught backside as she kneels over the bed -Jaune's often said that her ass was his favorite part of her. Second only to her smile.

She can hear him sniffing for her as she takes her tank top off and folds it up, knowing if he wasn't muzzled she would be able to hear him licking his chops too. She bets there's already a sizable dark spot on the floor from the drool. Pyrrha unhooks her bra and a low growl breaks the still air, making her almost laugh as she ties her hair up in a messy bun. She'll leave her billowing pajama pants on for the time being; taking them off now would just make it more difficult for the both of them.

They weren't mates, but Jaune's body had done everything it could to prepare him for it, to encourage him to mate her ever since they had started being intimate. It altered the way the change effected him, how his senses would focus during and afterward, and how his body reacted to just the thought of being in her presence even when the full moon was weeks away. It made him bolder in his human form, less shy and more confident in asking her out on dates and the like. It gave him the unconscious urge to stay physically close to her, to take in her scent whenever he could and all but rub himself all over her to mingle his smell with hers, and he could smell when she was ovulating. All these things to convince, and maybe trick, his animal brain into believing she belonged to him.

And she does, just not as his mate. She wasn't ready for that, though her own body has tried to convince her that she is, and he's admitted to as much before. They're both comfortable and content as they are now, and if that changes, they agreed to deal with it when it happens.

Pyrrha shivers, feeling the heat between her legs pitching, thinking of what his instincts will drive him to do now that the moon is high like his hunger. Her watch chimes again, and then she hears the familiar racket in the cage. He's starting to transform.

The morning after an Alpha male's first change is vastly different from a female's, especially if he believes he has a mate. Solo males become mostly human with the exception of claws and fangs and more brilliant eyes, just like females; necessities to defend themselves in the wild if needed. These traits are magnified once they're of the mind to seek a mate; they show a more blurred mixture of wolf and man as not all the fur recedes, the fangs are larger like the claws, their ears are still long and furry and move like little radar dishes at the slightest sound, and their irises are big and bright enough to make the whites of their eyes almost disappear. And their great strength remains at a greater capacity, not just to defend themselves, but to overpower a potentially difficult female or protect her after the mating. Their minds are simpler, can only handle simple words and phrases and tasks, unlike females who are typically much more alert in order to properly pick a suitable male or ward one off.

And again, unlike the Alpha females, these changes don't receded as the full moon wanes. They remain until the phases pass completely, when the window for the best chance of a female conceiving has closed.

Sweat rolls off of his body, his pale flesh reddened and spotted with patches of tawny fur. His bare chest heaves with powerful gasps for breath, his heart pounding and pounding inside his ribs as the change resolves. The world is a heated blur of sound and harried thoughts and wild mania that wraps him up in confusion and an unnameable hunger. His head feels too heavy to hold up, gravity pulling him down until his forehead touches cold, cold concrete. Jaune can feel the straps of the muzzle against his face, unconsciously growling in exhausted disapproval with his lips flaring around still prominent fangs. He reflexively resist the restraints around his arms and chest, the bands wrapped about him giving just enough and not enough at the same time. Another growl, this one louder yet just as impotent in changing his situation as the last.

"Shhh,"

His ears prick upward and he stills with a little grunt, then his nostrils flare and he starts sniffing again. He can just pick up her presence in the room, can feel the heat of her body against his livid skin. The screech of the hinges on the cage door make his ears flatten, a tight whine working in his throat to punctuate a tense flinch against the noise.

"Shhh," there it is again, soothing him, drawing his senses to the soft sound. He feels hands against his furry face, lifting his head for him. "Scent,"

His nostrils flare again and he buries his face as best he can into her palms, pulling in her smell to both ease and stimulate his mind. _Female. My female. Love female._ Jaune feels the straps of the muzzle lifting from around his head, his body rumbling in grateful comfort as her hands come to rest on his cheeks. He seeks her palms again and kisses them, licks them, nuzzles them. _Love female._

Pyrrha waits until he opens his eyes, always admiring and startled by the vibrant indigo they have become. She can tell that he's trying to smile, the gesture a little distorted by sharp teeth that are almost too big for his mouth. She strokes his head, pushing his hair away from his sweaty face and enjoying the attention he's giving her. Her hand tightens in his hair when he tries to use his teeth against her palm and tugs. " _No_." She couldn't be infected -shamanic magic had its perks- but she still didn't like being bit. And a proper Handler is consistent with discipline if nothing else when werewolves are involved.

Jaune whimpers in response, his ears drooping and his neck going limp so his head rests completely against her other hand. Submissive. _Obey female._ Because a willing female would stay willing so long as she was obeyed. Jaune knew that in his human brain and, with Pyrrha's help, had trained it into the werewolf as well. He looks up at her, searching for some sign of forgiveness which she is quick to give in the loosening of her grip.

Pyrrha kneels down in front of him, encouraging him to hold his head up on his own as she needs her hands to twist open a large bottle of water. She holds it up to him, tipping it up as he almost clumsily closes his lips and teeth around it and starts guzzling it down noisily, desperate for it. A few drops spill out from the corners of his mouth, running down his jaw and along the thick, tensed tendons of his neck to the furrow of his collarbones. Her eyes follow the lines of his swollen musculature down his furry chest to his stomach, then to his navel and lower. He's already powerfully erect, his cock bobbing in time with his heartbeat and with a glistening bead of precum about to drip from the head that's almost purple. Her own arousal spikes when she realizes she's staring.

A satisfied growl vibrates through him when the last of the water disappears down his throat, his shimmering blue eyes telegraphing all the gratitude he wants to give her. She returns the notion with a modest smile, watching as his eyes are moving from her face to her bare breasts and back again. She wants to laugh but holds it in, instead reaching for the keys in her pajama pants so she can begin unlocking his restraints. He growls in anticipation when the first of the clasps come undone. Pyrrha gives him gentle reminders as she goes, making sure he keeps still and remains calm as he's given more freedom to move. It's more for his safety than hers and he knows it; he knows she wouldn't hesitate to protect herself by any means if he were to pounce, regardless of his intentions.

Pyrrha leaves his hands bound behind him and the leather and steel harness about his chest and shoulders in place, encouraging him off of the floor and to his feet with a stretch of chain anchored to a collar that's incorporated into the harness. "Come." she says softly, lovingly but with purpose. He follows a step behind, knowing that's where she expects him to be, and faithfully tails her to the bed. _Love female. Obey female._ Still holding tight to the lead she sits him down on the bed, encouraging him to the middle of it so she can attach the chain to the anchor in the wall -leaving the Shaman with a safety net should things go wrong. As unlikely as that is.

Jaune is panting put patient when she comes back to sit in front of him, the tip of his tongue peeking between his parted jaws. He's looking her over again, obviously focused on her breasts and anxious for allowance to touch her as he quietly whimpers with each exhale. His claws flex behind him, itching to hold her. Pyrrha takes his face in her hands again, making sure she has his attention before slowly bringing him in for a kiss. She retreats when she feels him pressuring forward, "Easy," she commands, and he responds immediately. When he's calm again she tries once more, getting what she expects. She feels the air moving against her cheek as he takes in her scent through his nose, feels her body shiver as he growls into her mouth. She temps his tongue with her own, and again receives what she expects with a throaty moan that makes his ears waggle happily. He leans into her again, this time being allowed to without discipline, that is until he leans too far and almost pushes her on her back.

Pyrrha resists just enough to make him recoil, expecting it and pleased she doesn't have to remind him of his place again. Not that she would because she's almost lost her patience, she needed him terribly and her aching, throbbing core is more than proof enough. His head still in her hands she encourages him forward, directing him towards her throat. "Seek."

No resistance or hesitation, Jaune immediately presses against her, his mouth and nose diving into the crook of her neck. They're both shivering and humming with pleasure, her from the velvety roughness of his tongue, him from his wrenching hunger feasting on the taste of her flesh and the thin concentration of pheromones she's putting off just for him. _My female._ He growls gently against her throat, his teeth brushing the skin. _Love female._ He manages to rein in a little of his enthusiasm as her hand settles in his hair.

Pyrrha's free hand smooths through the fur on his back, following the furrow of his spine until she can feel the clasps of the restraints around his wrists. She doesn't need to see the mechanism to undo them without a key; she had designed it herself, after all. Almost immediately she feels his powerful arms wrap around her, pulling her against him, and out of reflex her hand flexes in his hair, wordless but effective as he relaxes around her.

"Gentle." she reminds him. She knows it's hard for him because it's the first night, but she can't ease up on correcting him.

He whines, a long and low sound that almost manages to earn her sympathy. To show she isn't mad at him she takes both of his hands and presses them against her breasts, letting his fingers mold to their shape and give them a tentative squeeze. He swallows loudly, his tongue swiping across his fangs as a little string of slaver rolls to his chin and falls to the sheets.

" _Gentle_ ," she repeats, and is pleasantly surprised to see him nod. He tucks his chin and eases forward, his hands carefully kneading as he sniffs and carefully nips at her throat. His ears twitch to focus on the mewls that emerge from her, meeting the needy noises with his own pleased rumbles. One punctuated moan from her makes his cock twitch, his hunger surging.

"Good wolf." she encourages, kissing the top of his head as she relishes the amazing way she feels. "My wolf." then she chokes on another moan as he puts a series of too brief butterfly kisses down her sternum before catching a tightened nipple in his mouth. Even in his wilder mind he knows what she likes best. He knows she likes the roughness of his tongue against her tender nipple, loves the way he flicks it with a firm tip, and _he_ loves the way she claws at him when he gently suckles her. He abruptly switches to the other breast and swears she almost comes off the bed.

Pyrrha looks down and watches him, focusing on his glistening tongue whenever it slips into view before it disappears again. She catches trails of saliva across the tattoos on her chest, somehow making the black and blue ink seem brighter. She shivers when he growls against her collarbone, his hands clutching at her hips. She tightens her grip in his hair only enough to get his attention before pulling back and easing away from him. "Stay," she says, and he complies though his eyes shimmer with savage hunger. The Shaman stands just beside the bed, watching him for a moment knowing he's going to reach for her, which he does, but only until the lead snaps tight when he reaches the end of its length. He pouts at her, licking his fangs again.

"Just a moment more." she assures him, part of her admiring how almost puppy-like he is kneeling on the bed, on all fours and eager. Pyrrha keeps her eyes on him as she slowly, teasingly shimmies out of her pajama pants and steps out of them once they've pooled at her feet. A high-pitched whine coincides with the way his eyes sink down her body and then back up again, going only as high as her navel. She knows what he wants and isn't offended that he won't look her in the eye.

When she approaches Jaune shuffles back, giving her room to kneel on the bed in front of him again. His hands are open and waiting for permission, something he doesn't receive as Pyrrha slides her hand through his hair. She grips just a little, directing more than correcting, wordlessly instructing him to back up a little further and lower himself to his elbows. She pets his head, making sure he knows she's not displeased with him, then catches his eyes when she eases on to her backside and opens her thighs to him. "Seek."

Jaune growls with enough intensity to vibrate the entire mattress, Pyrrha feels it creep up her back and her core clenches. Keeping his hands on the mattress he crawls towards her, still panting and eyes still fixed on what his feral desires are after. He wants her so badly, it would be all too easy to mount and rut her just like this, but he knows better. He knows she deserves better behavior than that from him. The Alpha male starts by tenderly nuzzling the inside of her thigh, her smooth skin like silk against the fur on his face, then he tests his boundaries with the tip of his tongue and takes the subsequent gasp from Pyrrha as permission to continue. Jaune kisses and nips, making her jump, making her pant just like him as his mouth draws steadily closer to the apex of her thighs. All the while her heady aroma fills his head and makes his mouth water more than it already is.

Pyrrha watches, shivering in anticipation as he gets closer, closer, and finally touches his hot, wet tongue against the slick folds of her sex. Her body jumps, a breathy squeak perching in her throat as his hot breath skates across her belly and his nose prods her swollen clit. He feeds on her hungrily, almost purring against her sensitive flesh and making her shake, her thighs trying to close and blocked by his broad shoulders.

"G-good wolf," she breathes, unsteadily smiling, her cheeks flushed, "my good wolf," She withers with a shuddering groan, her eyes threatening to roll back when she feels his tongue wriggling inside of her. Jaune hooks her thighs with his hands and pulls her closer with a punctuated jerk, her bright laughter echoing through the otherwise desolate space.

His hunger is peaking and he removes himself from her, only to begin licking her soundly in long, powerful strokes with the flat of his tongue.

" _J-Jaune_ ," she gasps, trying to focus through the carnal haze so she doesn't unintentionally pull his hair and make him stop. " _Gods above_ , _Jaune_ ," He growls heavily against her clit as his lips close around it, gently sucking to bring her to a quick and powerful climax that leaves her trembling. Jaune stays between her legs as she comes down from it, nuzzling her inner thigh and taking in her scent to his heart's content.

Pyrrha shifts slowly, her wits having yet to fully return as she negotiates her half boneless self onto her knees and then her feet. She gives him a smile of assurance when she hears him whimper, soothing him before moving to where her canvas bag lay and kneeling down to reach inside. She takes a few mouthfuls of water from another large bottle, leaving it out beside the bed for later. Then she takes a condom from the large, already open box, setting the container by the bed as well -who knows, he might have to go more than once before he can sleep, and she _does_ want him to be able to sleep. With the small foil package tucked between her fingers she retrieves two more items from the bag and then returns to her anxious lover.

"Posture." she orders softly, waiting only a few seconds for him to process beyond his lust to obey. He props himself up on his knees, upright, and folds his hands atop his head. "Good wolf."

Now she regards the straight, heavy wedge of his cock as she opens the condom. With care and practiced ease she rolls it in place, watching his face as it tightens into a tolerant snarl. Gods, he must be _aching_ by now, a thought that's only reinforced as she finds the firm but for now only mild swelling just above the base. He likely won't last long this round, but she doesn't care -this is mostly for his benefit anyway and being able to comfort him like this will be enough to satisfy her for now.

One of the other items from the bag is a black rubber ring that she also slides into place near the base of his throbbing shaft, not so much to help him maintain an erection -it's intended purpose- but more so as insurance against a number of other things. Now he's whimpering feverishly, a fresh sheen of sweat rolling down his forehead, neck and chest.

"Just a little longer, you're doing so well." she strokes along his jaw with her hand, mindful of the reflexive growl and the lethal flaring of his lips around his fangs. "Now present."

Without hesitation Jaune parts his teeth, his anxious groans no longer muffled by his tongue that now lays flat in his mouth. The last item Pyrrha had taken from her bag was a ring-style gag, but instead of the standard chrome ring it's a thick rubber one with a metal core so as not to give under his powerful, Alpha jaws while also not harming his teeth. During sex is when Alphas are most prone to bite, and until they decided to fully mate, biting was off limits. Still she wasn't going to be so cruel as to deny him use of his tongue because she knows how much he loves to taste her, even if the gag facilitated almost uncontrollable drooling.

"My good wolf. Are you ready?" she holds his face again, her forehead against his.

He moans and nods, his scalding hot breath wafting against her chest. _Need female. Need love. Love female._ She kisses the tip of his nose and then eases back, looking him over before shifting to put her back to him. Jaune remains still, knowing he's not to move until given permission, but he keeps his brilliant indigo eyes on her and refuses to blink.

Jaune likes the tattoos on her back, loves to trace them from the small of her back to the nape of her neck and back again, a part of him coherent enough to be mesmerized by their intricacies and somehow uniform flow across her body. He loves them because they keep her safe from him and from other things like him, because they allow her to come home and keep loving him after her jobs are finished. _Love female. Love_ _ **my**_ _female._ He groans tightly, wanting so badly to clench his jaw as she backs up against him, the straining length of his cock sliding against the cleft her backside. His entire body tenses, muscles bulging beneath his skin as she teases him. When she finally lifts her hips high enough and the tip of his cock brushes her entrance he freezes, a growl aborted in his throat that he strains to hold in. He feels her fingers pushing against the underside of him, offering the resistance he needed to slip inside her, and the rest of that guttural noise wrenches free. Still keeping his posture he snarls with every exhale as she works herself further and further onto him.

Pyrrha bites her lip against the burning stretch inside her; even after all that wonderful priming her body still wasn't quite able to take him right away. She eases along inch by inch, canting her hips in steady progression until their bodies blur together against each other. Now she's panting too, feeling so full and hot and desired as Jaune growls behind her. His cock pulses deep inside of her, matching his heartbeat that her own has begun to sync up with. She reaches back to clutch his hips and stop him from thrusting before she's ready, and she shivers around him as his chin perches on her shoulder and he growls again. Pyrrha turns her head to kiss his cheek and nibble at his skin, and Jaune answers with a heavy drawing of his heated tongue along the bend of her neck and shoulder. Though he can't bite he presses his mouth to her shoulder, the tips of his fangs pressing but unable to pierce. It's where he would likely mark her if and when they became proper mates.

Jaune's ear perks to listen as Pyrrha begins whispering, giving him soft orders to proceed but gently alongside declarations of love and trust. As hungry as he is, and even though he has her right where he needs her -ripe and wanting on his cock- he obeys. _Obey female. Love female._ The first thrust, slow but firm, has the air flying from her lungs and brings stars to her vision. Gods it's so _deep_ , and the steadily growing thickness near the base of him is not lost on her. Another thrust and she almost collapses, a third and she shouts his name. By the fourth she allows him a steady and rhythm and gives him permission to use his hands. To her surprise he bends over her slowly, stretching out over her back, pushing her onto her hands as he drags his hot tongue along her spine and his huge palms smooth around her waist to cross her stomach. Through the heated static of it all she can hear his hips smacking into her backside, the punctuated sound only adding to the carnal haze she's allowed herself to be lost in.

"H-harder." Pyrrha orders breathlessly, crying out it as he complies with a sudden, jolting thrust that nestles him impossibly deeper. " _Jaune,_ "

He tirelessly maintains, giving her exactly what she asked for. He's enticed by the way to plump cheeks of her ass shudder with each impact, that human something in him tastelessly amused. Jaune moves his big hands across her body, palming her breasts and testing them with his claws until she corrects him with a biting command. He apologizes with a slow lick to her neck, removing his hands to cup her shoulders instead. Jaune pulls her to meet his bucking hips, sparking that much more crackling pleasure through her core and making her scream for him. He wanted to make her come, in the back of his bifurcated mind that's all he could think about beside his own desire to climax -beside his natural instinct to breed. He was already close, but he didn't want to finish before her.

" _Faster_ ," she pants, lifting up to line her body with his before he has a chance to yank her to him. He wraps his arms around her, tight, possessive, giving himself the anchor he needs to pitch his hips the way she needs. His hand is at her throat, not squeezing or testing, just there, but she reaches back to grip his hair for safety's sake. She's screaming his name again, her core starting to clench around his burrowing cock. That thickness is getting bigger, soon it would be fully engorged and he would come. "Jaune, please," she all but begs, "please, my wolf. Make me come,"

He snarls into her neck and happily obliges, loud growls jumping through his fangs every time his hips collide with hers. A steady stream of slaver drips from his jaw and onto her shoulder, coursing across her body in a shimmering stripe. Jaune feels the telling burn in his loins. He knows what she needs, and thankfully it's just the thing he wants to give her. _Love female. Love love love..._

Almost there, almost... _almost_...

Jaune stills, she hates it but she knows what he's doing and doesn't resist or complain. He grunts, the noises stuttering and rough, until he finally buries himself inside her one last time, as deep as he's able. There's a final, pinching pressure at her entrance as his knot slides inside, bringing her shattering climax along with his own. His hot seed spills into the rubber held in place by the ring, each pulse encouraged by a jerk of his hips, and her muscles clench around him with every flex reminding her of the knot that keeps them together.

The afterglow is slow to come as these climaxes tend to last a while. Sometimes it feels like the spasms go on forever, but when everything is finally still and quiet again, the knot recedes and Jaune disengages just before they collapse to the bed. He wants to rub himself all over her, not caring about the sweat and the drool and the mess, but Pyrrha isn't having it. Her mind is repulsed by the idea of being sticky in bed and she almost immediately gives him the "posture" command once her wits are back where they belong. He'll lie on his back but still put his hands atop his head, and patiently tolerates her tidying rituals. She'll retrieve the swollen condom from his still half-erect member, quietly impressed at just how full the rubber is as she ties it off and finds the small trash bag she packed in her canvas tote. She drinks some more water before coming back with a towel, wiping herself down and then doing the same to him. Then she removes the harness from around his chest and neck.

Now that he's sated -for the time being- it's safe for him to go without the gag, and he's visibly happy to be rid of it once she unfastens the strap from around his head. He rumbles with relief, watching as she puts the damn thing out of sight and out of his mind. Like a well trained charge he waits until she give him leave to relax before trying to wrap her up in his arms; he wants her scent all over him and his all over her and he just wants her in his pores and loves her and...

"Love. Love." Jaune murmurs into her neck, kissing there. "Love Pyrrha."

She lets him gather her body against his bigger one, smiling and giggling as he all but sinks into her skin. A fresh heat rises into her cheeks as she feels his still stiff member against her thigh, though the erection isn't full. He might be ready to go again in an hour, a few hours at most, and she just hopes she'll have a moment to enjoy cuddling at least before he's nudging against her again. He leans over her, kissing her chest and taking a nipple in his mouth again to see if she might be ready for another go, but retreats when she gives him a soft refusal. He doesn't complain or pout but obeys. "Love Pyrrha."

"Love Jaune." she replies, her hand cupping the back of his head mostly out of habit, but not without a tender sincerity. She does love him, loves him more than she's loved anyone to be honest. "Love Jaune." she repeats with a breathy sigh.

He'll fall asleep fast, likely faster than he meant to as he dozes off in the middle of saying something. She'll watch him awhile, not so much sleepy as she is simply tired. His ears have shrunk just a little and taken on a more human shape, but they still move like a wolf's in little jerks as he snores. The fur on his face looks thinner yet the size of his fangs and claws are the same. Her other hand molds over his, her fingers curling between his over her belly. She's caught up in thought again, the same thoughts she has every time they make love under the full moon.

Pyrrha thinks about months from now and if anything will have changed by then. She thinks about Jaune. She shivers as she imagines how it would feel to let him come inside of her, to take his cock -his knot- raw and unprotected, and let her physiology change to be more receptive and demanding of him. To let him all but own her. She wonders if it would change him, make him feel entitled to her body and disregard her heart as human men have been known to do. Would he love her like this forever? Would he ask her to mother his children, assuming they could have any together at all -would all her woven wards and charms allow her to conceive with a supernatural? She can't think of it having ever happened before, and she doubts it's due to a lack of trying.

And besides all that, what sort of children would they be? The possibilities were dizzying.

Pyrrha shrugs to herself when she's tired of the idea, momentarily distracted as Jaune mutters in his half sleep. Her troubled expression softens as she scratches the back of his head like one scratches a beloved pet, almost ashamed of herself for thinking of him as anything other than the sweet man she knows he is. She kisses his forehead. "Love Jaune." she whispers, receiving a lazy purr in return.

Maybe they'll talk about it all when he's more like himself. Until then, she tries to sleep while she can.

Author's Note: This was 1000% impulse driven and all for fun. While I did use some mythos from my "Lunacy" AU, this should be treated as an unrelated piece. I just really wanted to do a role reversal like this, and I had a super good time writing it. It is totally self indulgent, but I'm still open to critiques and thoughts from you all. Hope you had a good time because I certainly did! Love you guys!


	2. Chapter 2

**Moonspell**

 **Part Two**

Shaman's don't sleep deeply, and they rarely need eight hours to feel fully rested. It's a habit trained into them from the start of their apprenticeship; they aren't taught their first spells until they can stay awake and alert for thirty-six hours straight on only four hours of sleep. Still, Pyrrha tries for a full night when she can, usually before she has a string of jobs.

At the moment she hovers between that deep abbreviated sleep and full wakefulness. Force of habit. She knows by some unnameable instinct that her alarm clock is about to go off...maybe ten minutes or so from now. She isn't going to open her eyes to check because that will make her want to get up and begin her day before she really feels up to it. Not a great way to start off. Instead she rolls over, her back to her nightstand to remove the temptation, and wraps her limbs around the warm body on the other side of the bed. She smiles against Jaune's neck when she feels a pleasured rumble in his chest and gives him a little kiss, finding herself settling back into that fleeting slumber. It'll take her down without her notice.

When she wakes again she does it to the sound of shuffling around the bed, likely Jaune off to the bathroom or something. She doesn't like the feel of the empty space beneath her hand, unconsciously whining about it. A spark of frustration of the bed feeling too big makes her roll onto her back, back on her side of the mattress, her arm draped across her eyes in case Jaune accidentally flips the light on when he returns. She's almost asleep again when she catches the sound of his footsteps, following them as he rounds the bed. He's trying to be quiet, she can tell, and she has to resist the urge to laugh because it's impossible. She knows his steps like she knows his scent, the particular sound of his breath, all those things that lovers know. Pyrrha can tell he's lingering somewhere in the room, and she wishes he'd just get his ass back in bed so she could have five more perfect minutes before she absolutely _has to_ get up.

She'll get her wish, just not in the way she expects.

Jaune knows she's awake, at least in some form, because he knows her. He knows Shamans don't sleep like other humans, but his Shaman in particular could seamlessly drift between here and there like one walks to and from a room. And he knows it's partly because her Shaman brain is aware of a werewolf in her bedroom, regardless of whether or not he's welcome. A part of him laments that, but he understands; she has her life, and that life has raised her to be ready for anything and everything that goes bump in the night. Like him.

Still he loves her. Still he lingers at the foot of the bed and watches her with an adoration that he feels in his bones, somehow deeper than his soul. Pyrrha is so beautiful, inside and out, and he can't imagine what he would do if she wasn't in his life. He could have been placed with any number of Handlers in any of the four kingdoms, but somehow the powers that be saw fit to deliver him to Pyrrha. How lucky could one man be?

He sighs quietly, his crossed arms pushed upward by his briefly swelling and bare chest. Gods above does he love her. Jaune tucks his lips between his teeth, wetting them with a quick pass of his tongue as he thinks. He'll smile to himself, deciding to take a chance, and bends at the foot of the bed. He'll find the edge of the blanket and sheets and pull them up, doing his best to carefully slip beneath them without Pyrrha's notice. Maybe, just maybe, she isn't _too_ awake.

The Shaman tenses when she feels the mattress shifting at her feet. She doesn't know what to make of it, her awareness too fuzzy to quickly discern a reaction to something she doesn't know is dangerous. Then she feels lips pressing to the top of her foot and relaxes a little, only a little as she anticipates Jaune's poor decision to possibly tickle her. But he keeps kissing instead, working steadily upwards, and she unwinds. She shivers at the scratch of his stubble on the inside of her calf.

"Jaune," she mumbles, half sleepy groan and half interested whimper. He hums behind his lips as he presses them to her skin, making her tremble, "Jaune, I have to get going soon."

"I know." comes his soft response from beneath the blanket. "We've got a little time, and I've already started your tea for you."

"Th-thank you." goosebumps rattle across her skin as a spark of arousal crackles through her core. "B-but,"

"Please," he kisses her knee, the pucker of skin to skin loud enough to hear, "I want to make love to you before you go. May I?"

She exhales in one sudden burst of air as she feels the tight pinch of her skin being pulled into his mouth. He sucks hard with a little teeth, and she knows he's trying to leave a mark. Part of her wants him to. In more ways than one. "G-gods, Jaune,"

Jaune eases forward, marking his path with more kisses as the rest of him disappears beneath the blanket and settles between her legs. He negotiates her thighs against his shoulders, her heels settling near his shoulder blades. He smiles when her hands slip beneath the covers and card through his hair, her touch encouraging him to nip and lick at the silky inner bends of her legs. She jumps again and he hums against her skin. "Do you want me to convince you?"

She almost says no, biting her tongue to stop herself. Her better judgment made her want to do it because she had responsibilities and schedules to keep and a train to catch in two hours and...and... _sweet gods above_. His canine catches the tendon along her inner thigh and she can't hold back the throaty squeak that emerges.

Jaune rises on his elbows. "Is that a yes?" and he's all but purring. She swears he almost purred even though the full moon is three weeks away yet. He laughs against her navel, his hot breath spurring more goosebumps, and then kisses her there. His lips linger on her skin as he sinks down again, his teeth grabbing hold of the waist of her cotton boy shorts just long enough to make it snap when he lets go. Though it's dark under the covers, his above average eyesight makes out the beautiful flutter of her pale belly.

He's laying on his chest again and rests his head against her thigh for a moment. Her scent is starting to stir his hunger, but the wolf in him only stretches and rumbles comfortably instead of the usual snap and slaver. Jaune's hands move around her hips to splay across her stomach, pulling back towards him with a gentle scratch of his nails, and he relishes the drawn out groan his lover gives him in return. "I want to taste you, Pyrrha," he kisses her clothed center to make her jerk again with another taught mewl. "I want to be inside of you. But if you say no, I'll stop."

While she tries to think she scratches his head, knowing he likes it. Pyrrha knows she should say no. She should say no because she has so much to do and places to go and because it's always harder to leave if they make love first. It's harder to leave and it makes her want to rush her work to get home sooner -something she never _ever_ considered until Jaune came into her life. Sometimes she wanted to hate him, but never could. She just _loved_ him too damn much.

" _Please_ ," she finally relents, "please make love to me."

He's more than happy to oblige.

Jaune stays between her legs a moment longer, playing with her with his mouth, his teeth sliding oh so gently over the cotton barrier to graze her stiffened clit. He also pulls on the fabric, letting it snap back into place like before. At one point she threatens to correct him in order to spare her underwear from being ripped, a warning he chuckles at. It isn't until he feels a telling clench in his own loins that he decides to move things along, rising up between her thighs and tossing back the blankets. Even in this poor light he can make out her flushed cheeks and glinting green eyes, the way she looks up at him makes him swallow loudly. He just looms above her for a moment, letting his mind fill up with memories and fantasies of her naked and panting and begging. Gods above, she's so beautiful no matter what, but seeing her vulnerable like this -like no other man has seen her- takes his breath away. He just wants to swallow her whole.

Jaune stalks up her body, his hips settling against hers, his stiff cock nudging her through his sweat pants. His hands splay across her stomach, pushing her thin tank top higher and higher until her breasts are uncovered. He wets his lips before giving one stiff peak a little kiss, smiling against her skin when she shudders beneath him. He'll meet her desperate eyes for a moment, one blond brow raised to compliment his almost smug grin, and then takes the nipple fully into his mouth.

" _Yes_ ," she exhales, her entire body responding as her limbs wrap around him. She has the clarity long enough to pull her shirt the rest of the way off and toss it aside, but then her arms are back around his neck and shoulders. Her hips are bucking smoothly, rhythmically against his without her realizing it. "Right there. Just like that." Maybe it's him, maybe it's the shock of the spontaneity, or even the haze of the morning, but she's just so hot for him right now. It's taking every ounce of control she has not to demand he take her this instant.

Jaune hums contentedly against her breast before switching his mouth to the other, little jolts of pleasure running through him as she sighs and grips his hair. When he chances to lift his head she's got him by the cheeks and pulls him up into a searing kiss that quickly deepens, her tongue all but shoving its way into his mouth. He meets her with equal enthusiasm, but resists when he can tell she's trying to roll him on his back. "Hey now," now he's got her by the shoulders and he isn't letting go. The look she's giving him is priceless and he can't help but smile at her helpless confusion. "You asked me to make love to you. Are you going to let me do that or not?"

Pyrrha sputters, fumbling on anything and everything she tries to say. She's just drawing blanks, her loss for words and baffled expression only complimenting the sleepy mess of her hair.

"Just relax, okay? Who knows," he chuckles, "you might like it." And she'll resist his grip a little before relenting, rolling her eyes and shaking her head, but there's a smile trying to pull the corner of her mouth. She knows it's all in fun.

When he's certain the debate is over, he presses on.

Jaune kisses her slowly, deeply, and gradually works his way down the column of her throat, pausing only to close his mouth over the swift pulse he feels there. Lower still to her collarbone, he bites down just a touch, just enough to make sure she's paying attention because she has a thing with possibly visible hickeys. Then he's back at her breasts, giving them a fraction of the attention he had before. He hates that they don't have all morning for this, but it's better than nothing. It's worth maybe missing her a little less.

He grips the waist of her boy shorts when he arrives there, but this time he endeavors to pull them down, only using his fingertips to help when she lifts her hips. Jaune lets her knees hook his shoulders, holding her up as he works towards the apex of her thighs. She doesn't expect him to take her like this, reflexively bucking against him when his mouth closes around her now bare center, his big hands cupping her ample backside. Even though the house is empty aside from them, Pyrrha pulls a knuckle to her mouth, biting down against a sudden scream. She watches him, just able to make out the pink slickness of his tongue as he leisurely laps at her dewy folds. She can see how much he's enjoying himself, unconsciously striving to do the same as she palms her breasts. A spike of white hot arousal lances her when she realizes he's watching her too. Their eye contact is solid, unbreakable and piercing, completing the circuit of their bond without word or gesture.

Pyrrha can feel her impending orgasm and tries to focus enough to reach for her bedside table. She's halfway to grabbing the handle of the first drawer when she withers, losing herself for a moment at the sensation of his smooth lips closing around her tender clit. All thoughts shatter as he steadily draws the bud into his mouth, suckling. "J-Jaune," she pants, feverish, "Let me- _oh god_ ," he hummed against her, the vibration making her head spin and her core clench hard.

Jaune bends, letting her rest on the bed again so he can free up his hands. He takes a second to push his sweat pants down, the cooler air a shock against his heated erection. She tries to squirm away from him, still reaching for the nightstand, and he tugs her back before she can get free of his mouth. He's hardly aware of her light, stuttering chastisement as her scent blurs everything around him. Without warming he works his hand beneath his chin and slowly but purposefully slips two fingers inside of her. Pyrrha almost bucks off the bed, the noise that tears itself loose something between his name, a scream, and a carnal moan. It's a noise that morphs and repeats, almost matching the rhythm he finds with his tongue and fingers working together.

" _Jaune_ ," she's given up, both hands now in his hair instead of hopelessly struggling. "Y-yes... _yes_..."

This time he growls against her, shattering her.

Jaune sits back on his heels when she finally comes down, watching her pant and shudder as his thumb draws lazy circles on her trembling thigh. He's smiling, pleased with himself and admiring her in equal measure. His free hand absently strokes his erection, tiding himself over until he's given leave to proceed. Surprise skews his face when she opens her arms to him, beckoning. Almost cautiously he crawls up to her, lining their bodies with their hips coming together with a jolt of uncertainty. She pulls his lips to hers, demanding and hungry, her legs circling his waist unexpectedly. "I just want to feel you," she whispers, breathless. "Please. Just for a moment."

Jaune thinks he understands, hopes he does, and slowly rolls his hips. The broad of his cock slips between her pillowed folds and rubs her just right, both of them shivering with a shaky groan that's strangely harmonious. He does it again, an electric charge shooting beneath his skin and making him bristle. Gods above, does she feel good.

"Inside,"

He pauses, momentarily tense, and all the while he just looks at her. They've been talking about it, talking about her getting used to the idea of them going further, so it isn't so much that this is coming out of nowhere. It's just that he wasn't expecting it like _this_. He was expecting smaller steps, or at least nothing like this until much later. Months at the very least. Still, if she wants it...

"You're sure?" but he won't accept it when she just nods. "Look me in the eye and say it."

Pyrrha meets his gaze as requested, hoping against hope that he can see how certain she is even though she doesn't feel it entirely. She knows for a fact that she's safe so long as he doesn't climax, but knowing and applying can be two different things. Before she gets too caught up, she squirms a little and finally gets hold of the drawer. With a surprising quickness she snatches a condom from the box and palms it out of sight. "I want you inside me, Jaune. Just as you are." and she says it as steadily as she can.

Jaune takes a breath, partly bracing himself. He smiles to reassure her. "Alright."

"I love you." she half blurts, looking almost surprised that she said it.

"I love you too." and he kisses her forehead, maintaining eye contact as he shifts his hips. Then he captures her lips as he slowly presses forward. He swallows the high pitched whimper that rattles through her when he slips passed her entrance and nestles the first tense inches of himself into her, pausing and breaking contact to ask if she's still okay. Pyrrha just pulls him into another soul searing kiss and tightens her thighs around his waist, burying him to the hilt before he's ready. Now he's the one groaning and she loves it. For a long moment he's still, trying to focus, because she's amazing and he adores her and if he can't get it together he'll lose himself right now.

All Pyrrha can think to do is kiss him; his lips, the tip of his nose, his cheeks, all of it because it's the only thing that keeps her distracted from all the blaring sirens in her head that are going off. All of them are screaming in warning and demanding she stop right this second even though that's the last thing she really wants. This feels too right, even if it's terrifying.

"Pyrrha," he pants against her throat, his tone a mixture of caution and pleading. "Gods, _Pyrrha_." She bites the tender lobe of his ears and his hips pitch reflexively, he shakes as her core clenches tightly around him. "It's...it's almost too much."

"We can stop," she says quickly.

"But I don't want to." he chuckles breathily against her neck. "You feel so good."

Pyrrha squeezes him, embraces him with her whole body like it might be the last time, then sighs. "We should stop."

"You're right...right." but he hates that she's right. It's a rarity, but he does. With obvious reluctance he eases back, withdrawing, holding in a disappointed groan only until she sets hers free. They both hate it.

He takes the condom with a nod of thanks and quickly rolls it on. Jaune eases over her again, showering her in quick kisses until she's giggling, dropping the serious air of the moment so they can both relax a little better. She accepts him again, taking his entire length with ease and a quiet gasp. Jaune pulls her up, his arms snug around her waist as he leans back and lets her settle in his lap. It's deeper like this, _so deep_ , and they both need a moment to catch their breath and stabilize. All she has to do is rock her hips to find the delicious friction they both need, his hands cupping her backside to dictate the pace. She'll come first, him following swiftly after.

Jaune stays close to her throughout the rest of their morning, helping her finish packing -he tosses his Pumpkin Pete's hoodie into the suitcase when she's not looking- and getting breakfast on the table. He'll brush his hands against hers whenever he's able, hugging her from behind as she stands at the stove or fixes herself a cup of tea, wishing she could just wear him like a favorite shirt. Maybe it's just him being hopelessly in love, maybe it's the wolf seeking whatever its lover would give, at this point he didn't care; Pyrrha is everything to him and it guts him to think she's going to be gone for...no knowing how long.

They eat together with only a little conversation, he knows by the look on her face that she's trying to focus on the work ahead, to get in the right head space, so he doesn't push it. When the time comes he follows her to the garage to help load up her bike for the trip.

"I've arranged for Ren and Nora to watch you for the full moon."

"Oh, okay," he seems pleasantly surprised. "When are they actually coming?"

"In about a week or so, I left a little extra money in the usual place so you can get the groceries you're going to need."

He smiles. "You know I have a job."

"I do," she smiles back, pulling on her leather riding jacket and zipping it up, "but it doesn't pay you enough to feed you, Ren, _and_ Nora."

His face stretches. "You're right, that's fair." and he nods. "Would it be all right if I had my mom over?"

"Of course, Gypsy is always welcome here." Then she eases herself into the seat, one leg swinging over to the other side of the bike with her foot pulling up the kickstand. She watches Jaune step away and crossing the garage to pull up the door, her head rattling with the metallic racket. Early morning light floods the room, making everything a shade of gray. She pulls the helmet off the handlebar and props it in her lap as he comes back. "I'll call you when I get to the hotel."

"Okay." he nods once, smiling again in the hopes of covering up the sad puppy look he has in his eyes.

Pyrrha looks ahead, her eyes following the pavement to the highway at the end, her teeth worrying the edge of her lip as her brow furrows. "Jaune I'm...I'm sorry."

"...What for?"

"For," she leans her head back, gesturing towards the door that leads into the house. "For...you know...earlier."

He shakes his head once he understands. "Don't apologize, you didn't do anything wrong. We've talked about it already. We won't do anything sooner than you're ready."

"I know, but..." she's trying to find the right words. "I must be making this so difficult for you. I know you want...that."

"Yes, I do." he shifts a step closer, maintaining eye contact as he reaches out and cups her cheek with his hand. "But I don't want anything you're not comfortable with. If we're to take that step...I want us to take it together."

For a moment she just stares at him, her expression unreadable as her hand slides unconsciously over his and grips it. Then she decides it's best not to dwell on it now, she had a schedule to keep after all. So she smiles and kisses his hand before giving it back to him. "I love you. As soon as I know how long I'll be gone I'll let you know."

"Okay. Love you too. And drive safe." he reluctantly steps back, flinching only a little as she starts the engine and it roars to life. He'll watch her until she pulls the bike out onto the highway, disappearing behind a wall of trees. After closing the garage door again he hurries back inside to get ready for work. He'll text a brief invitation to his mom before he leaves, reminding her where the spare key is should she arrive before he does.

Sure enough, when his truck rolls into the driveway early that same evening, he eases it into place beside his mother's peach colored Cadillac. It's old but obviously well kept, and he has to laugh every time he sees the "my other ride is a broom" bumper sticker -he always thought it was a little on the nose, but his mother found it hilarious.

Stepping inside he doesn't bother calling out to her, she likely knows he's here already. He can hear a lively sort of music coming from the living room, recognizing it as a style of Vacuo, his mom's favorite. Likely she's got the television on one of the few music channels. He passes it by and goes straight for the kitchen.

"That sounds like my boy walking," and she would know, not just because she's his mother and mother's know everything, but because of the lapin ears standing erect atop her head. They're tilted back, fixed on Jaune's light footsteps as he comes into the kitchen, his sneakers squeaking on the tiles. When she turns her head away from the open cabinet she cuts a big smile. "There's my baby."

"Hey, momma." Jaune sets his keys on the counter once he's close enough, opening his arms to put them firmly around her as she reciprocates. She squeezes and squeezes, showering the side of his face with countless kisses. "Thanks for coming."

"Thanks for the invitation. I'm to assume that woman of yours is off fighting the good fight, then?"

"Yeah, Pyrrha left this morning." He nods as they separate. "I actually wanted some advice, and it isn't really something I felt confident talking about with her around."

"Oh?" genuine surprise pulls her features, one long ear cocking at an angle. This didn't sound like his usual self; her son was prone to a lot of things, but keeping things from Pyrrha is certainly not one of them. "Is something wrong?"

He thinks for a minute, shuffling back towards the small dinning table on the other side of the counter, his hands in his pockets. "No, I wouldn't say it's wrong. It's...well, if everything goes the way I want it to, I want it to be a surprise."

Gypsy's ears flatten outward, one dark brow rising. "But Pyrrha _hates_ surprises."

"I know," he shrugs, deciding to sit. "She's gotten better though. I think...if it gets to that, I'll give her a heads up, she usually takes it a little better if I do. I don't have to tell her what it is, only that it's coming, you know?"

"I see." she nods, understanding loosening her confusion and letting her smile again. "But before we get into it, don't you have anything to eat in this house that isn't microwavable or instant?"

"Ah, well," he quails when he sees her standing there with her fists on her hips, the way mothers do when they already know the answer to their question. "I forgot to go to the store on my way home."

"You'd forget your head if it wasn't attached," though the chastisement is gentle, with a bit of love because she isn't actually angry, just inconvenienced. "So what do you suppose I make my boy for dinner?"

"You know you don't have to, I'm a grown man." he tries not to roll his eyes, smiling instead.

"A grown man that clearly doesn't know how to properly feed himself."

He chuckles, lilting his shoulders because she's right to a point. "How about take-out? There's a nice Mistrali place that delivers. Let me treat you."

"You know how I feel about it, it isn't right for a mother not to cook for her son."

"It isn't right for a guest to serve their host, either." and he watches her expression change again, turn to something like shocked. "Your words, momma."

"Cheeky ass kids of mine." She scowls playfully and shakes her head. "Have it your way, then. Is this the same place as last time?"

"Yeah, but they've got new owners."

"Oh, well then if that's the case." she nods this time. "If my food's cold again, I'm hexing the whole block."

Thankfully that wasn't the case, and the two of them would enjoy their meal alongside a movie on the sofa. Once the credits rolled and the trash was tossed out, they sit together under a strain of quiet. Gypsy can tell he's thinking, looking for the right words. He'd always been that way, slow to speak, but by the same token what he had to say was usually worth hearing.

"You know," he starts, hesitating a moment, "me and Pyrrha have been talking a lot lately...about taking it a step further."

Gypsy's ears snap upright. "You mean...?"

"I want to marry her, momma. I want her to be my mate."

She watches him blush and lets an almost smug grin lift her cheeks. Being a Witch has it's perks; incredible power, extended youth in some cases, innate protection against anything weaker than yourself -but for Gypsy in particular, she was privy to a great deal of information that no one else had access to. With all the clout that came with it, she made certain Jaune got housed with the Handler he needed. And not just because Pyrrha was the best, either. "Have you told her?"

"Yeah."

"Is this the surprise you were talking about, you want to propose?"

"Not really." he shakes his head. "I think if I do it now, she'll say no."

"Why's that?"

"I have theories, and that's the best I've got because she hasn't come right out and said what's bothering her." he shifts in his seat, facing his mother and propping himself against the arm of the sofa. "I don't know if you've noticed, but Pyrrha's kind of a cynic."

Gypsy buzzes her lips. She's noticed. "It's a Shaman thing, I've met enough of them to know. Not that I blame them,"

"I don't blame her either. I mean, it's her job to be suspicious sometimes, right? Sometimes it's the only thing standing between her and coming home alive." and for a moment he's caught up in just how heavy and real that fact is. "Anyway...I think she's waiting for the other shoe to drop with us. If that makes sense."

"It does, but can you elaborate?"

"I think," he worries the corner of his lip between his teeth, "I think she might not believe I'm in it for the long run? Or maybe she's got it in her head that I only love her because she's a woman and she's available and I have regular access to her-,"

"She thinks you love her because she's there? She's worried you might turn tail the second you sniff someone else?"

"I guess so, yeah, but I'm exposed to all kinds of women at work and I don't feel anything like that for them. And I think she worries that it's all instinct. She knows the wolf wants her, but she might not be so sure that my heart does. And that doesn't even take into account everything else that would come along with going through with it." Everything would change. From life here at home to what jobs she could take and where she could go and so on. Her whole world would go bottom's up -even without the potentiality for children.

"It's a big step, son. Awful big, even for her." she nods slowly.

"And that's one of the reasons I called you."

"Oh? Are you saying you have an idea as to how you can reassure her?"

"Yeah. And I'm going to need your help."

Something about his tone when he said that doesn't sit well with her. It's stirring her maternal instincts in a wholly uncomfortable way and it shows in the way her face twists. "Before I agree to anything, you need to tell me -in excruciating detail- _exactly_ what you want to do." Because she would do almost anything for her children, but even she had her limits.

Jaune swallows and takes a breath, hoping against hope she won't shoot him down.

 _(-)_

What should have been a two week job turned into almost _two months_ , and Pyrrha is far from pleased about it even as she begins packing to finally return home. Her body aches, bruised and pinched by the pull of medical tape on little wounds. She's physically and spiritually tapped, and all she wants is to sleep in her own bed and smell herself on the linens. She wants to shower in her own shower and loaf on her own couch and not eat food out of a box. She wants Jaune to wrap her up in his arms and run his fingers through her hair, his heartbeat lulling her to sleep.

In just a few more hours she would be able to have all those things and she can't wait.

Pyrrha catches the earliest train she can, the sun having barely come up by the time it starts rolling out of the station. She'll try to sleep through the trip but can't, feeling strangely too tired to relax. So she does her best to rest at least, bundling herself up in Jaune's coat and using her saddlebags for a pillow as she spreads out over the otherwise empty seat. Before she gets too settled in she fishes her scroll from her pocket and starts tapping out a text.

 _On the train home, should be back just in time for dinner._ _If they're still there, you should invite Ren and Nora to eat with us._

Once she's sure it was sent she lets her hand rest against her chest, now trying to focus on the steady racket of the train and the tracks beneath it, anything to keep her from thinking about how crappy she feels. It seems like she just might doze off when she feels her scroll buzz. A text from Jaune.

 _They left for a job, but mom will be here if that's okay. Do me a favor and text me when you're almost home? I have a surprise for you._

Pyrrha feels her face scrunch like it always does when she gets a certain uneasy feeling.

 _Jaune, you know I don't like surprises. And I'm exhausted, can't it wait?_

 _I mean, it could, but I really want to do this tonight. You don't have to do anything except show up, I promise._

Pyrrha stares at the screen for a moment, not the least bit comforted. Then the indicator for an incoming text pops up on the screen before the message arrives with a little jingle.

 _If it makes you feel any better, I'm not proposing._

 _It's probably awful for me to say it, but it does. I'm sorry._

 _Don't apologize, I get it. But will you let me know when you're close?_

She has to think about it, but eventually sends along her agreement. _Okay, I will. I'll see you in a few hours. Love you._

 _Love you too, be safe._

Pyrrha glares at the device for another moment, eventually shrugging in hopes of dissipating a little of her anxiety. It doesn't help, but she makes due.

It's late afternoon when she's back on her bike and headed home, a ride which will take another hour and a half, maybe a touch longer as she stops by the bank on the way to deposit her earnings -she got double her usual rate for this one seeing as it went so far beyond the estimated time frame. Whoever said a host of gargoyles could be cleared in two weeks needed to have their head examined. Before getting back on the highway she fulfills her promise and texts Jaune, and all the while she's on the road she agonizes over what he could be up to. It could literally be anything, especially since it _isn't_ a proposal.

It isn't that she doesn't want to marry him, it just doesn't feel like the right time. There's too much she needs to consider, too many options to weigh before she can give him a confident answer.

When she's at the last traffic light between her and home she quickly taps out one last text, giving him the cross streets so he knows exactly where she is. She won't be able to check his response until she's in her own driveway again, after walking the bike passed Gypsy's Cadillac and into the garage, and taking a moment just to accept the fact that she's home. When she reads his answer her face twists with confusion.

 _Come around back._

What the hell is he doing?

 _Give me a minute or two, I need to get out of my travel clothes._ Because she doesn't know if she can handle whatever this is going to be until then. She'll haul her saddlebags in with her and heads straight for the bedroom. Pyrrha takes her time getting into her pajamas, taking a moment once she's dressed just to lay face down on the bed and breathe. Pyrrha then fishes out her sandals from beneath the bed because she's sick of shoes and makes her way outside.

Almost immediately she bristles, anxious. The shelter door is open. As tired as she is, Pyrrha breaks into a half run, hurrying across the grass because she knows in her gut that something is wrong and she's praying it isn't terrible and...and why is Gypsy walking out of it? Oh gods, did she unravel the wards? She could if she wanted to and Pyrrha's guts hit her heels thinking about all the work she put into them and _why does she look so damn happy to see her if she unraveled the wards?!_

"There you are," Gypsy is striding comfortably across the grass towards the younger woman, mentally bracing herself as she watches all the color leech from Pyrrha's face. "Good to see you, dear, though you look like a half mile of bad road."

"G-Gypsy, what's going on?" she's panting, she's frantic, and once she gets in reach of the Witch Gypsy has by the arms, almost having to hold her up. "Did something happen? Where's Jaune, is he all right?"

"Easy does it, child, our boy is fine, I promise."

"What is this? Where is he?" her wide, green eyes dart downward to the other woman's hand. "Why do you have his scroll?"

"He's just inside, waiting for you."

Pyrrha's expression clearly telegraphs her confusion, her mouth working wordlessly in an attempt to articulate how lost she's suddenly feeling. "B-but...but it's the middle of the evening...the sun is still up for gods' sake, he doesn't need to,"

"Honey, take a breath, okay?"

"But none of this makes any sense,"

"It will if you take a second to listen." she assures her. "Just breathe, girl. Now, just like you said, it's barely dusk. The sun's still up. And tonight's a new moon to boot, yes?"

It takes Pyrrha a moment, but she eventually nods.

"I just want you to keep that in mind when I walk you inside, okay? You need to trust me on this one, and you need to trust Jaune. Alright?"

She tries to talk again and fails, stopping herself when she realizes all she can think of are questions she's already asked. So she resigns to nod again, partly grateful when the Faunus lets her go. The two walk into the shelter together.

Pyrrha had expected to see a countless number of things when she walked through that door and her eyes adjusted, but she can't process a single one of them when she actually accepts what she finds after coming to a freezing halt just inside the doorway. Every other dreaded idea flies right out of her head, making room for the reality that greeted her.

In the middle of the room, outside of the cage and unbound, is a fair furred and very large Alpha male werewolf with piercing blue eyes.

Author's Note: I can't help myself sometimes, hence part two. Part three is coming too, so, you know, be on the lookout. I'm really grateful for all the praise you folks have thrown my way in spite of this being barely more than self-indulgent smut. For anyone who isn't familiar, Gypsy is from my RWBY fic "Embers of Autumn"; I love her so much and she's the only mom I can picture Jaune to have. You can check out some artwork of her on my Tumblr or my DA if it pleases you. Now, off to write the ending!


	3. Chapter 3

**Moonspell**

 **Part Three**

A part of him had expected her to cry, as awful as that sounds. He had expected Pyrrha to be too shocked to speak or react at first -which happened- when she saw him there in the middle of the shelter floor, almost posing like a dog in a show, on all fours and back straight with his massive head and ears up. He had expected her to slowly approach him, disbelieving until she finally touched him and smoothed her hand over his head -which also happened. He had expected nervous laughter as she accepted what he had accomplished and then try a few commands with him, wondering if he could still understand in spite of his appearance. Then, when she realized he could understand her, she would cry and be happy that he had -after having convinced his mother to rail him ceaselessly with spells designed only to cause pain, whatever it took to trigger his blood to morph in reaction- learned to control the change.

But _that_ did _not_ happen.

Pyrrha had held his head, her face unreadable as he looked back at her, his eyes aware and hauntingly human and full of an intelligence that isn't usually there. She held him and looked him over and stroked his ears as her eyes filled with tears. And just as quickly as they came she tried to choke them down, garnering a confused tilt of Jaune's head. She sputtered and wiped her eyes when she felt the hot droplets falling and forced the most uncomfortable smile he had ever seen her wear. "W-wow," she stammered. "It's _you_. I," and then nothing else came. After, when it looks like she couldn't stop the breakdown from coming, she pulled away from him and left the shelter, stopping whatever Gypsy tried to say with a firm hand as she passed. "I'm exhausted, I'm sorry." and then she was gone.

Jaune and Gypsy looked at each other, appearing equally lost.

That was three days ago, and Pyrrha had barely looked at him since, much less spoken to him. And all the while he wonders what he did wrong. He wonders why she's been obviously avoiding him, why she won't eat with him or watch movies at night with him or even come to bed -she stays up late in her workshop only to eventually collapse on the couch. It's like he's been living with a stranger these last seventy-two hours.

The evening of day four he comes home from work and notices a small pile of newspaper on the table, arranged in such a way that he can't help but feel like it was put their with the intent for him to find it. He thinks to leave it alone but his curiosity gets the better of him and he chances to look them over. All it does is fill him with confusion, a sort of which that he simply can't dispel on his own. Normally he wouldn't dream of intruding on Pyrrha's time alone, just out of respect, but this is too much. A lump forms in his throat as he approaches the door to the garage and he has to take a moment to gather his courage before knocking. Imagine his surprise when she grants him entry.

Pyrrha's hunched over her table, looking to be carefully winding freshly oiled leather around the handle of a blade. Her face is set in deep concentration, like she doesn't even know he's there, but of course she knows.

"Is something wrong?" she asks just loud enough for him to hear over the radio.

"No, just...can I ask you about something?"

"By all means."

His face quirks; why so formal all of a sudden? "What's this about?" and he presents a fold of newspaper that he had behind him.

After a moment she sets down her work and lifts her head, looking at the paper in his hand and then up at him. "It's the classifieds."

"For apartments."

"Yes."

"Why?" he looks her in the eye, unyielding but not overpowering. "Do you want me to move out? If you do, you can just tell me. You don't need to act like a stranger in your own home if you want me to leave."

Her eyes fall back to the paper and she sighs, leaning back in her chair as she crosses her arms. "I just," she loses the words, shaking her head.

"Just what, Pyrrha? Talk to me. You haven't said a word to me in days... _please_. What did I do?"

It's a long while before either of them says another word, the tension in the room mounting in waves. All the while Jaune watches her, waiting, anxious for her to reveal what's on her mind. Does she hate him now? Is she too scared to keep him here now that he can change any time he wants? Is she worried he'll turn on her, force himself on her in spite of the years of love and trust they've shared together? Gods, please don't let it be that.

"I just," finally, and her throat is tight. Maybe with guilt, maybe uncertainty. "I thought...you don't really need me anymore...so you'd look for a place of your own." Because Alpha males like their freedom. All of her charges had, so why should Jaune be any different? Just because he was convinced he loved her? She was convenient for him, convenient for his natural instincts to latch onto so long as he was under her care -true love just doesn't happen as easily as it had with them. Now he could control the change, he could do it whenever he pleased and learn to work his life around his needs on his own. Even if that wasn't the case, her behavior over the last couple days coupled with this, he'll think she's pushed him away.

Then he laughs, a soft, breathy sound in conjunction with the bouncing of his shoulders as he sets the newspaper down on the table beside him. He laughs, and it's visible on Pyrrha's face that she can't understand why. What's so gods damn funny?

"Where is this coming from, Pyrrha? What ever gave you the idea that I wanted to leave?"

 _Because that's what people do._ She pulls her lips between her teeth and looks at the floor. _People change and they leave._

"Why would I want to leave when I did this for _you_?" And he waits for her reaction. When he doesn't get anything resembling one, he kneels down in front of her and cocks his head, making himself unavoidable. "I did this because I remember all those things you said you were worried about -how us being together would affect your work, would affect you- and I thought this was the best solution. Now I can give you the support you need because you don't have to _carry_ _me_ all the time."

She still won't look at him.

"So what has the last few years been? Were you just using me to get your rocks off? I was just scratching your wolf-kink itch?"

Her eyes snap to him and her face angrily twists with such a quickness it's startling. He can see the Shaman in those eyes, to cool and calculating disciplinarian he knew she always had in her but had never seen in full force like this. She's so offended she can't even speak, but her eyes say plenty.

"Then what was it? Pyrrha," he sighs softly, "we've shared a home, a bed, we've shared _each other_...from where I'm standing that's a lot like love. Unless this is just some human thing where-"

"I'm scared." she blurts out, the anger having been replaced with something desperate. "I'm just scared."

" _Why_? Tell me why, and we can fix it."

It takes her a moment, but it comes out in time. "It's stupid."

"Not if it's upsetting you. Come on," he chances to take her hand, surprised when she lets him. "Talk to me."

She smiles and laughs like she's trying to fool herself, like she's trying to trick her brain into thinking this isn't as big a deal as it actually is. Pyrrha's made a bit of a mess of this and a part of her hates admitting it. She had wanted to be proud of him, she really did, but it was just bad timing and it all heaped onto her at once and she just didn't know how to handle it. For some reason her brain was dead set on thinking the worst and acting on it, and now she's caught up in a mess that shouldn't have been made to start with.

"I'm scared of change, I always have been and I don't know why." maybe it was the near dozen foster homes she's floated through when she was a kid, maybe it was all the moving around she had to do as an apprentice. It could be one or both, really. "But...it just scared me. I just wanted to come home to my normal house and normal life and...mostly normal boyfriend and...I got caught off guard. I can't believe I handled it so poorly," she laughs again, but this time it sounds more like crying. "I'm sorry, I really am, but once I got it in my head that you didn't need me, I couldn't stop myself."

Jaune listens carefully, does his best to absorb it all, and all the while he keeps his expression soft and sympathetic. He knows most of these things, knows she hates change and inconsistency, and that's okay. He understands that and why his surprise upset her. And now he knows he should have listened to his gut -and his mother- and just told her outright.

"Even with all that, I just want what's best for you." she continues, sniffling a little. "But I don't really want you to leave."

"I don't want to leave either." he agrees, shuffling on his knees until his chest presses against her legs and he all but drapes himself in her lap. "I just want to stay in this normal house, with this normal life...with _you_."

Her inner cynic rears its head. "Because you want to mate with me."

" _Because I love you_." he counters firmly, but without raising his voice, and he grips her hand in his a little tighter. "Never mind whether or not you want to be my mate, _I. Love. You._ And I don't care what I have to do to convince you of that. Just name it and I'll do it, no matter what it is."

For a long time they just look at each other, neither sure if there's anything else to say. When it goes on for too long Jaune drops his head in her lap, still holding her hand and still worrying what's going through her mind. A little rumble works through his chest, more reflexive than anything. He finds a little comfort when her other hand comes to rest atop his head, her fingers curling gently into his scalp.

"I just need some time." she said, her throat still tight. "I think it all just hit me at once and...yeah. I just need time to let it sink in."

"That's okay. Whatever you need, I'm here for you."

"Thank you." she pets his head, feeling him -as well as herself- relaxing a little more. "And we have a lot to talk about."

"I know."

"...But let's go cuddle first." because she's touch starved and can't take it any more.

Jaune smiles and turns his head to press a kiss to the top of her thigh. "Took the words right out of my mouth."

 _(-)_

Of all the times Pyrrha laid on her back beside Jaune, staring up at the ceiling in thought of what was to come, not once did she consider she would be here. Certainly not here, in her preferred tattoo parlor, with him in the chair beside her and two of them holding hands across the space between as a pair of artists worked on them. Occasionally he turns his head to look at her, his face flushed and tight at the pain, and smiles as best as he can. He's never had one done before, but she thinks he's doing an excellent job so far. She smiles back, squeezes his hand, and then goes back to staring at the ceiling, virtually unaware of the needle forcing ink into her skin. She'll start thinking again, partly distracted at her own wonder of being here now, when months ago it just didn't cross her mind but as the faintest of thoughts.

The two of them had agreed against rings, seeing as jewelry for either of them could be more of a liability than anything -Jaune would break it or hurt his paw when he transformed, and if Pyrrha ran afoul of the right person, it would be all too easy for them to put a curse on it. Tattoos were better for a number of other reasons, too, so it was a seemingly natural choice. Now here they are and Pyrrha almost can't believe it. Just as she can barely believe that once they were finished here, they were off to the courthouse to sign some paperwork to make them man and wife in the eyes of the law. Pyrrha almost laughs when she remembers that Gypsy is waiting at home for them, likely pulling out all the stops to throw her son and soon-to-be daughter-in-law something like a reception. The Witch demanded at least that much since they eschewed a traditional wedding.

"You okay?" Jaune asks, the sharp, buzzing pain tightening his throat.

"Yeah." she replies naturally. "I'm used to it."

"I know, but you chuckled. It doesn't tickle you, does it?"

"Hardly." She shakes her head, grinning a little as she rolls her eyes.

Jaune laughs softly to himself, the sound cut off by a hard wince. "So what are you thinking about?"

"This...us. You know?"

"Yeah, I know. I can hardly believe it myself." and he sighs, staring up at the ceiling just like she is. "...Are you happy?"

"...I am." and it's honest, and she hopes he can tell.

Because she's trying in spite of how difficult the last collection of weeks have been for her and for them as a couple. Her cynicism made adjusting so hard for her sometimes, and this shift between them was no exception, but she made an honest effort and Jaune's been good about letting her know that he sees her trying. She tries by keeping to their routines, assuring them both that just because he can change whenever he wants that nothing else between them is obligated to change. They still watch movies and have dinner together, still go out on occasion to walk in the park or run errands. Some days they just lay in bed together and talk.

They talk about what they're thinking and feeling, what they're afraid will come out of their new normal. They lay together and do joint research on what to expect during the full moon now that it won't force his transformation; turns out he still has to take a day or two every month to turn, but he can choose when, and even with that being the case, his hybrid-like symptoms will still manifest during the apex of the lunar cycle as usual. But they find that he has more of his human mind now, which keeps him from having to be contained so strictly. Instead of locking him up, they chanced to roam the yard and the surrounding woods together for a few hours. Having put a lead and collar on him kept the only person who saw him from thinking he was anything more than a dog out for a walk with his owner.

They hadn't properly mated yet, and thinking about it makes Pyrrha's brow furrow. She _wants_ to do it, she's certain of that, but something about the idea still makes her uneasy and she just can't name it. Maybe it's because that's what will be what really seals all this together. Once they go there they can't turn back. Well, they can, but that would be weeks of painful hormonal therapy and years of heartache to get away from -something she isn't sure she has the strength to undertake. So she looks at the matter as one looks at a one-way ticket to anywhere they've never been. Then there was the topic of children, which he handled incredibly well in spite of how she was sure he was disappointed to hear she wasn't of the mind to have any, even after he expressly stated that "It's your body, your decision, and I respect that."

Through all of this Jaune has been endlessly patient. He's shouldered her worry and her attempts at timid backpedaling, knowing that they both really want this and that she's just letting her uncertainty get the best of her. He's understanding, sympathetic, and she couldn't possibly thank him enough or love him more.

Before they knew it the tattoos were finished and they were on their way to the courthouse, now with twin crescent moons emblazoned on the inside of their forearms. And from the courthouse they head home, not saying much at all, but not really needing to.

As they suspected, Gypsy is waiting for them at the house along with all of Jaune's seven sisters, as well as Ren and Nora. Together the lot of them had loaded down the dining table with a veritable banquet's worth of food, a fine assortment of Gypsy's home cooking which everyone adored and sometimes fought over. But nobody will touch the food until proper congratulations and hugs and kisses are meted out. Jaune's family loved Pyrrha, so it took a while. The lot of them crowd the living room to eat and talk and just enjoy the happiness filling the place, and it'll be long after dark before they start to leave. Gypsy will be the last to go, lingering long enough to give them a proper goodbye as well as to bestow a promised enchantment on Pyrrha; it was the only surefire way, what with all the supernatural elements involved, to prevent pregnancy. Of course she reminds the young Shaman no less than three times that she can undo the spell any time, to which Pyrrha just nods and smiles.

When the house is empty and still again, a change they're both thankful for, they pile onto the sofa together to just enjoy the quiet. The sliding glass door to the back yard is open, the screen door between them and the insects outside, but it's still in the hour before dusk falls and the crickets emerge to sing. The room smells like the seasons changing from Summer to Fall, distinct but indescribable.

Jaune kisses the top of her head, his arms around her keeping her to his chest. Their hands are laced together on her stomach, his long fingers drawing circles below her knuckles.

"How's your tat doing?" she asks softly.

"Hm?" and his body tenses, like he was almost asleep. "Oh, it's fine. Almost forgot it's there."

She nods, having gotten the answer she expected. He's healing faster now that the full moon is coming closer. If she remembered correctly it was this weekend. Good timing.

He sighs. "My wife." and his tone is of quiet wonder and contentment. Like he's finally got everything he's ever wanted. " _Wow_."

Pyrrha smiles to herself. "I know." She's doing everything she can not to show how huge all of this still feels. It isn't a terrible feeling, just almost too big. "My husband."

"I really like it when you say that." and her nuzzles her hair with his cheek. "You know what else I would really like?"

"Hm?" she has a feeling, but she wants to hear him say it.

"I'd really like to make love to you right now." he kisses her scalp again. "But if you don't want to that's okay."

Pyrrha doesn't answer right away, taking a moment to think and to shift around and face him. She buries her face in his chest, hands fixed loosely in his shirt, and for a time she just takes him in. His scent, the sound of his heart, the heat of him surrounding her, and it soothes her. "We should. It'll make the full moon easier on both of us."

"Hey," he pulls back, tipping her chin up with his finger, "I don't want you to feel obligated. That's not what this should be about."

"I don't feel obligated, I'm being practical. If that's a turnoff for you, then I'm afraid I have some bad news," and Pyrrha chances to smirk up at him.

He playfully scowls at her until he can't keep back the little laugh he was holding on to. "Still, you know what I mean. I want this to be a good thing for both of us."

"And I'd rather you not rip me to shreds this weekend. It'll help your control, and it's only for the first cycle. After that,"

"After that we'll be mates and it won't be so strong?"

"As far as I know." according to the possible volumes worth of research she had been doing for the last few months. "It's okay, I promise. I want to."

"Alright," he concedes, kissing her again. "But let's cuddle a little longer, this is nice."

Eventually cuddling turned to kisses, turned into petting and kissing at the same time, turned into heavy petting, turned into Jaune sweeping Pyrrha up in his arms and her giggling all the way down the hallway to their bedroom. There, their first night as husband and wife played out a lot like their first night as lovers; quiet, unhurried, and full of love.

The next few days pass in a blur, just the two of them caught up in each other to the point where the days blend together as a mixture of waking up, eating, making love, and sleeping. It isn't until one morning that Pyrrha catches the makings of fur growing along her husband's spine that she remembers that they were ever on a schedule. It's coarse and short, but in a few hours it would be long and downy and warm, strokable. And if her body is changing like she thinks it is, she'll be wanting her hands all over it and more come nightfall. She carefully unwinds herself from him and gets out of bed, dressing before she sneaks out to the kitchen to start her day.

She'll have time to get the kettle going and some bacon in a pan before Jaune shuffles in, likely roused by the smell. He eases up behind her, his hands slipping around her waist while his nose goes to the crook of her neck where he sniffs and rumbles softly. He kisses her and nuzzles her ear, his hands fanning across her stomach, seeming needy.

"You need to eat, Jaune."

He grumbles, then carefully takes a bit of her ear between his lips.

" _Food_ ," she turns on a touch of her correction voice and he pulls back with a huff. When she can hear him moving farther away she turns her head to watch him, realizing he didn't bother to dress. But she had expected that; he didn't like the feel of clothes when his fur came in. He fishes through the cabinets, partly mechanical and partly confused by the feral haze that's steadily coming over him as he searches for a mug. She's quietly proud when he finds it without any help, but then he gets into another cabinet and has to stop him.

"You can't have caffeine right now, you know that."

He grumbles again with something that looks like a nod, like he's remembering something as he puts the instant coffee back where it belongs.

"Your tea will be ready in a minute. Why don't you go sit down?"

Jaune will come up behind her and fondle her a little -as lovingly as he could in this state- and she spares him a kiss before he makes his way to the small dining table. She smiles to herself, amused at his less civilized behavior because she knows he'll be somewhat better once he eats. Might even get a few words out of him.

For Jaune, the world around him is mostly made up of whatever his senses can make of it. His skin is so sensitive he can almost feel the grain of the wooden table beneath his big, almost clawed hands. The light from over the stove is nearly too much for him, so he squints at everything. He can hear Pyrrha's heartbeat from his seat just as clearly as he can hear his own in his head. His mouth is watering for all the smells around him, the most potent of which is the mixture of his scent and Pyrrha's. It's different somehow, his animal brain knows it. Her scent isn't what it was the day they were married, but it isn't quite what the wolf in him expects it to be considering how often they've had sex these last few days -without protection, he remembers fondly. The wolf knows there's something missing, and as the day drags on, it will become steadily more insistent that it find that missing something. Until then he shoulders the burden of just wanting to rub himself all over her, doing his best to behave while he's still consciously able. When Pyrrha brings him his plate and his tea, he digs right in. She knows utensils are hard for him, what with his claws coming, so she doesn't care that he uses his hands.

Pyrrha gives him a chance to get some food in him before trying to speak, thinking that would make it easier for him to respond. "...Could we use our bed tonight?"

His head tips up, cheeks stuffed with food as he meets her eyes with a sort of doe in the headlights look. His irises are bigger and brighter. Then his head cocks in a very dog-like manner.

"I think it would be nice to be in our bed for...tonight." why is it still so hard to say it? She has to make herself say it when his head leans a little further. "I want to mate with you in our own bed."

Jaune finally nods, the gesture exaggerated. "Sorry." he manages, then swallows. "Yes. Our bed. Nice."

Pyrrha smiles at him.

"Collar?" he asks.

"Would you feel better wearing it? So you know I'm safe? Not that I don't trust you,"

He's nodding again. "Just in case."

"Okay. I'll use the lead, but I'll just hold it, okay? I'm not going to chain you to the bed." and for some reason she laughs, even though she's feeling nervousness and arousal blossoming in her belly. Him laughing too brings her a little comfort.

"No lead?"

She tenses and looks back at him, mostly curious but partly cautious. She'll agree to it, mostly because she feels like she's been doing all the taking today and needs to give a little. She could still control him with just a collar if she had to. "No lead."

And he smiles, showing her the beginnings of his fangs. "Love Pyrrha."

"Love Jaune."

The rest of the day goes by in a tense blur, at least for Pyrrha. She spends most of it marking the clock, like she would every time the full moon comes around, but it's different. She didn't need to prep food or find a list of things she needed to do to occupy herself through the night. She just needed to mentally brace herself for what was coming through a thin crimson veil of lust that simmers under her skin. She had read about these particular manifestations in her research, first-hand accounts from werewolves and humans alike who had mated with Alpha males -Betas were a different matter altogether and didn't apply- but none of that prepared her for how it would feel when it started happening to her. Her body really has changed, albeit a marginal amount, and it's reaching out to him as the moon settles into the sky. It's like he's in her blood and the only comfort she can find is in his presence, in his skin touching hers so their new chemistry can do what it needs to.

When the sun had fully set, Pyrrha went about locking up the house, weaving simple wards to more so keep them inside than to keep others out. With every exit sealed, she starts pulling blinds down, covering up every window.

"Jaune,"

He's sprawled on the sofa, still naked and with his hybrid symptoms in full swing. His head snaps up, eyes open with his furred ears up and alert at his Handler's call.

"Bedroom."

He obeys without delay, rolling off the couch and slipping off into the hallway. Pyrrha remains to finish the ward on the sliding glass door and pull the curtain across the glass, feeling like she's shut them off from the whole world. Now it's just the two of them, her and her werewolf husband. The situation is starting to feel too big again, but she swallows it down as she tries to shift her focus. An easy thing to do when your body -and heart, in truth- has been lusting all day.

Jaune's already on the bed, perched on his knees and knuckles in the middle of the mattress. She's pleasantly surprised to find he had already set out the collar and was clearly waiting for her to put it around his neck.

 _He wants you to initiate this. He's expecting you to lead him. Good._

"Come," and she gestures with one hand as she takes up the collar in the other. He stalks towards her, head low and neck bared, submissive. She cups his face, taking the weight of his head and maintaining gentle eye contact as she loops the leather around his neck and pulls the lone buckle together. For a moment she holds him there, feeling her body steadily heating just from this meager touch. Then she feels the buzz of a low, contented growl as it vibrates through him. It snaps against her senses like static and her mouth waters a little.

"Love Pyrrha." he purrs.

"Love Jaune." she smiles. Then she leans in and kisses him.

It's so easy to get caught up in it, she finds. Without delay she responds willingly when he puts his powerful arms around her, feeling the prick of his claws in her clothes and arching into his body instead of correcting him. Without a second thought she thrusts her tongue into his mouth, earning a low growl. He tastes different this time, it's just noticeable, and he's thinking the same thing in the same instant. Their kisses are loud and almost sloppy, but neither seem to care. It's far too late to care about those things. Jaune gathers her against him, pulling her onto her knees on the bed, his big hands cupping her plump ass with a breathy snarl. She mewls against his throat, one hand in his hair and the other anchoring to the plush patches of fur on his back.

Pyrrha can tell he smells different now too, the lusty haze in her mind just thin enough for her to notice. He smells... _better_ , not that he didn't smell _good_ to her as it is. Now he smells good enough to eat, compelling her to take a bit of his skin into her mouth. She's never been one to give hickeys, but she just might have to change her mind.

Jaune grips her backside tightly, encouraging Pyrrha to roll her hips, stroking his already full erection that's slipped between her thighs. He rumbles at the sensation, but he would much prefer to have her skin around him as opposed to her clothes. With a chesty grunt he pushes under her sweatpants, growling against her shoulder when his palms find warm, smooth flesh underneath. She isn't wearing panties and the realization makes him drool. He tries to push her pants down, his teeth closing around any part of her shirt he can get hold of like he's trying to rip it off.

"Easy," she corrects, panting. She quickly leans away from him, only far enough so she doesn't elbow him in the face as she twists out of her shirt and bra. He pulls her back in and she tenses as his mouth closes around her throat, fangs perfectly flanking her windpipe, and growls low and hard. She shudders, a tight moan just barely emerging. He isn't choking her by any means, but the erotic shock of the gesture is making her head spin. Pyrrha can feel the hot trails of saliva rolling down her neck and chest when he finally pulls away, and they look at each other, equally hungry.

Her pants are around her knees and she squirms to get out of them before he can shred them. His cock is between her bare thighs and she withers at the incredible heat of it. Now she's the one grabbing his ass and pulling his hips into hers, the broad top of his erection just brushing against her folds. She needs him closer, her brain frantically demanding more contact and friction. She wants him all over her, in her pores, _under_ her skin. But before she can do anything, Jaune wraps his arms around her, trapping her against him as he lifts her up and puts her on her back as her legs instinctively go around his waist.

Jaune covers her with his body, the heat building between them almost sweltering, making him sweat. Her bare breasts press against his chest, gooseflesh rising as he growls, pleased by the greater skin to skin contact. He feels the silk of crimson hair beneath his hands and he just wants to be surrounded by it. Instead he drags his tongue down her throat, kissing where his teeth had been before pressing lower. With little delay he snatches a taught nipple with his mouth, drawing on it like one draws in water to quench a terrible thirst. Pyrrha whimpers above him, her hips grinding rhythmically, his cock sliding through the wet heat of her center. He growls against her chest, shivering. If they aren't careful, he'll come like this. That's not what he wants; all he and the wolf want is to be nestled deep within her, locked inside of his mate as his seed fills her. He growls again, having wound himself up that much more.

It feels so good, having him all but smother her like this, his mouth at her breast and his cock between her legs. She can't remember her desire ever having been so high, so volatile and intense. Some primitive region of her mind wants to answer all of his savage noises with her own, and she has to wonder if she is even capable of making such sounds.

" _Jaune_!" now he's between her legs, loving her with his mouth, and she didn't even notice he'd moved. His claws test her hips, his grip tight to give him the leverage he needs to press hard into her and get his tongue as deep as possible. He needs this new taste of her, needs to drown in it just as much as he needs to breathe. The wolf is clamoring for its mate and he can't begin to deny it, especially since he wants the same thing. He devours her one mouthful at a time until her climax hits, quick and powerful like a bolt of lightning, but he can't stop licking even as she bucks helplessly against his mouth.

" _J-Jaune_ , easy," her hands clumsily finds his hair and grip it, "easy, please." because that was a hell of an orgasm and her whole body is suddenly hypersensitive and it's borderline painful. He obeys mercifully quick, sitting back on his heels, panting with a dripping chin when she's able to lift her head and look at him. He looks concerned, a hint of worry visible beneath the lustful haze in his eyes. "G-good wolf. Good wolf." she assures him, seeing him visibly relax.

"Love Pyrrha." he growls.

"L-love Jaune." she pants in response. Her thoughts are scattering around the heavy, body wide throbbing she feels. Words are almost impossible.

"Mate?"

She hears the word, processes it, and feels the weight of it. Pyrrha knows it isn't some attempt at a new title for her, like trying on a nickname, but a request. She refuses to let the anxiety surface this time, meeting his questioning gaze with certainty. "Mate."

Once her wits are back where they belong she sits up, turning to put her back to him like usual. But she freezes when his big hand cups her shoulder, tugging until she faces him again and she can see him shake his head. "Watch Pyrrha."

"Oh. Oh, alright. We can do that." Pyrrha finds herself giggling as he carefully lunges towards her, his face in her neck and kissing and nipping as he pushes her onto her back. A quiet gasp makes her ribs jump as he wedges between her legs, his straining length sliding through her folds again. She watches as his face twists, snarling quietly as he resists the urge to rut her. _Obey Pyrrha. Love Pyrrha._

She's impressed by his control, but she just can't stand to wait much longer. She'll praise him for it later, sure enough, but now she needed him like she's never needed him before. Reaching down between them she grips his cock, a couple of soft strokes make him squirm over her. Her eyes close, her mouth dropping open with a little moan as she teases herself with the firm, broad tip before positioning him at her entrance. Jaune whines tightly, all his teeth visible as his lips flare at the intimate touch. Jaune pushes into her before she expects him to, but doesn't correct him; it was more pleasure than pain.

Jaune thrusts his tongue into her mouth with a fierce kiss, telegraphing his urges that way instead of putting it behind his hips as he eases deeper into her. Her throaty mewls meet his chest deep growl, her limbs wrapping around him and locking in place when he settles to the hilt. Gods above, she's so warm and wanting, the delicious sensations unhindered by latex almost enough to shred what little restraint he has left. She shivers beneath him, fingers hooking in his skin and fur, and she can feel the makings of his knot already. This will probably be quick and messy and rough, but neither of them care. At this point it's all about mating.

Somehow, though, Jaune begins with even, deep strokes, almost like he's bracing himself just as much as he's trying to give her body time to adjust. Her hips roll to meet his thrusts and she murmurs confident assurance into his tender ears, her grip in his hair serving to spur him on. Her nails on his scalp crackle down his spine and make his hips buck, allowing him to swallow all the beautiful sounds she's making when he kisses her again.

" _More_ ,"

He doesn't need an explanation, he knows what she wants. He shifts in her arms, working them around his neck so he has the means to hook her knees over his arms and push them back. Pyrrha tears her lips away from his with a very loud groan as their hips meet again, feeling him impossibly deep inside of her. He's pretty sure her eyes almost rolled back. She whimpers, chanting that she loves him, and he rumbles in approval. "Love mate."

"Yes," she's too far gone to deny it now, "love mate. Make me your mate, Jaune, _please_."

She just had to say it like that, didn't she? _Obey mate._

Jaune pulls his knees beneath him to give himself the needed leverage and shifts to put her knees to his shoulders before pushing forward. Her hips are off the bed and wedged against his, and the way he's bent over her gives her zero clearance to move on her own. All she can do is hold on and hope she doesn't have to remind him to be gentle. Then she remembers the collar, and all is well.

It is quick, it is rough, and it is, in a way messy, but they love it.

Pyrrha takes the mating mark as well as she had hoped. Jaune knots her in one hard, punctuated lunge of his hips, a strangely soothing warmth coming after the stretching burn in her core, and his jaws part only to close around the inner top curve of her breast. Her body bucks against him at the piercing pain, her hands clawing at his back and leaving bright red welts, but she doesn't scream and there are no tears. She bites him too, in fact, tasting copper when she pulls back at the same time he does. Come tomorrow she'll be proud of the little semicircle of teeth left behind.

Jaune stays inside her, the knot keeping him still, and he laps at the wound with his tongue. Partly to ease the pain, partly so their new chemistry would continue to work like it should and change her body to suit the wolf better. She's petting his hair and panting, her heart humming beneath his sensitive ear. He sighs, rumbling on the exhale as comfort and fatigue start settling in. He waits until the scent of the wound changes, telling him the bleeding has mostly stopped, before he lifts his head and looks at her, happy to catch her gaze.

"Love Pyrrha." he tucks his chin to kiss the bite one more time. "Love mate."

"Love mate." She smiles at him, still running her fingers through his messy hair and suddenly loving how the words feel to say. "I love you, Jaune."

He smiles back and lays his head down again, looking up at her with all the adoration and contentment that fill his heart as she continues to pet him.

Author's Note:This was fun, even though I didn't give it the in-depth novel treatment. I could, but I don't have the mind to. Embers is calling me back and the Lunacy AU is still the wings; one more would just be too much. Thanks to everyone who reviewed and commented, I appreciate you, and it was my pleasure to entertain you, if only for moment. Peace and love, everyone!


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